I was at home today making some dinner, as I do, listening to the CBC, as I do, and thinking a little bit about meat. I don't really eat it you see. Not because I am an animal rights activist, not because of any religious inclination, not because it is expensive..., maybe for environmental reasons (resource consumption and what not). I actually don't give it too much thought as to why I don't eat meat, I just don't do it. Some of my friends have tried to pin me down on a reason and some people have asked me why I don't advocate vegetarianism more... I guess I am just not that kind of vegetarian. So there I am, making my dinner, listening to my CBC, and wouldn't you know it, it just so happens that there is show on the radio about meat: The Matter of Meat . I am not listening too keenly until the subject turns to famous vegans - turns out Frankenstein's Monster was a vegan. I started listening a bit more closely. The radio show continues with some in...

When you take a look at a park bench, I bet the last thing you think is that it looks like a waste by-product. Well you might be surprised to know that many benches are hiding something from you; in fact, they are often hiding millions of pieces of what we used to consider traditional trash. The company that is behind this transformation from garbage to park benches, picnic tables, and even coolers is a Canadian company called Terracycle. The founder of this company is Tom Szaky, who was inspired by the mighty earth worm. When Tom discovered worms digest dirt into compost, at the formative age of 19, he was flabbergasted. He created a business case at Princeton University to transform table scraps into fertilizer. You can now buy "Worm Poop" in major department stores. You can even get specialized Worm Poop for certain plants. Today, Terracycle handles a lot more than just compost. The company is an aggregator of major companies, each one investing in their own particu...

photo credit: electrictreehouse.com In the same idea as Extreme Couponing, an American reality show where people go completely insane, digging out coupon pamphlets out of recycling bins, collecting them in binders and then hitting the local grocery store for a 4 hour shopping adventure. They bring their children and spouse and come out of there with 6 shopping carts of random stuff (hand sanitizer, shampoo, tissue, canned goods, gatorade) and only pay about 40$. Yay for accessibility! But wait, there are still starving people out there. Oh…right! Hand sanitizer isn’t edible. Now Verizon is offering phones for a penny IF you sign up for a two-year contract. Sorry folks, this offer only works in the United States. Again, yay for accessibility! But also nay for encouraging over-consumerism.  It’s nice to have the latest technology, check emails faster than the speed of light and to telepathically communicate with your gadgets. I may not be a technology crazed person, which...

Photo Credit: Jonathan Rausseo I see garbage on the ground, I pick it up and put it in the trash. I drink an iced tea, I carry it until I see a recycling bin I see a light on and not in use, I turn in off I know we're both going to the same place, I carpool I don't agree with where my meat and produce comes from, I won't eat it I turn the lights off during Earth hour I know that something's in walking distance, I walk I see someone throw away a can when the recycling bin if five steps away, I get annoyed I have clothes that are too small for me, I donate them In my mind, I'm a pretty average guy, just tryin' to do my part. Apparently I'm a 'hardcore environmentalist'. For the longest time I didn't get it; the title really pissed me off. 'Not being a jerk when you don't have to be' is considered being 'hardcore'. But through the last month of Katimavik, living and co-operating with 10 other people and trying to make compromises...

Photo credit: Jonathan Rausseo *Click on image for a larger view I know we are now in 2011 but I did want to take a quick look back to 2010. It turns out 2010 was in fact a great year for sustainability on campus (see the last post: Once Upon a Time...), but there will always be more challenges to face. I was walking through the office today and I overheard some of the office students talking about space on campus. Okay... maybe I was eavesdropping but that's besides the point. We got into a little conversation about the campus space crunch. On one side having a compact campus is good because it helps us use our space more efficiently. On the side, a crowded campus means that there always seems to be a lack of space to so things. As the campus population grows this problem is going to get worse before it gets better. The University can only build a certain number of new spaces at a time. And with the increase in space comes an increase in resource consumption (more energy, more wa...

Photo credit: Jonathan Rausseo I know we are now in 2011 but I did want to take a quick look back to 2010. It turns out 2010 was in fact a great year for sustainability on campus (see the last post: Once Upon a Time...), but there will always be more challenges to face. I was walking through the office today and I overheard some of the office students talking about space on campus. Okay... maybe I was eavesdropping but that's besides the point. We got into a little conversation about the campus space crunch. On one side having a compact campus is good because it helps us use our space more efficiently. On the side, a crowded campus means that there always seems to be a lack of space to so things. As the campus population grows this problem is going to get worse before it gets better. The University can only build a certain number of new spaces at a time. And with the increase in space comes an increase in resource consumption (more energy, more water, more garbage). In 2010 we rea...